Sunday, February 11

Forget Chocolate, Eat Fennel on Valentine's Day

As a little girl, my favorite candies were Twizzlers ® and black jelly beans. Every Easter I would pick all the black jelly beans out of the bowl and leave the rest for everybody else. Though I rarely eat jelly beans any more, I love to cook with fennel, which has a distinctive licorice scent and flavor.

Although fennel has become fashionable over the last couple of years, this herb has actually been enjoyed in cooking since antiquity (see Lucretia Drusilla's "Whole Cooked Goat with Fennel" from her 02 February 53 BCE post). Many cultures use fennel as a culinary ingredient and as an herbal medicine, and as evidenced at my house, it’s a staple in Italian cooking.

It is a remarkably versatile herb and pairs beautifully with fruits such as oranges and apples as well as classic Mediterranean ingredients such as olives and eggplant. When eaten raw, its crunchy celery-like texture and sweet licorice flavor gives depth to salads. When sautéed or roasted, it takes on a savory quality. In fact, all parts of the fennel, from the bulb to the feathery fronds, are edible.

And since it’s St. Valentine’s Day this week, I thought you'd like to know that ancient Romans considered fennel an aphrodisiac and likely would have used it instead of chocolate for a romantic evening. As so many culinary trends are cycical, I'm predicting that fennel will become the new chocolate for Valentine's Day.

I can see it now: Food Network's Fennel February, heart-shaped fennel treats on the cover of Gourmet, contestants choosing fennel for the Passionate Dish Elimination Challenge on Bravo's Top Chef....

By the way, I have submitted this post for Weekend Herb Blogging which is being hosted by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen this week.

In a large skillet over medium heat, add 2 Tbsp olive oil. Add fennel, and sauté for 3-4 minutes until it begins to brown; add garlic, and sauté 1 more minute. While the fennel is still slightly firm, remove from heat, and place in a bowl. Add the olives, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, parsley, crushed red pepper, and salt.

In the same skillet over medium-high heat, add another 2 Tbsp of olive oil. Add the shrimp, and sauté for 5-7 minutes, turning to ensure that they brown nicely on both sides.

Add the cooked pasta and the fennel mixture into the skillet with the shrimp; toss well. Plate the pasta; sprinkle with more fresh basil and parsley. Finish it off with a drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil.

39 comments:

fennel, mon amour! didn't know it was an aphrodisiac, but i sure love it! in salads as well as cooked - just had some the other day, cooked in soup, then baked in the oven with a generous sprinkle of breadcrumbs and parmesan... divine! it's those simple things that i really enjoy!

I think shrimps are very Valentine-y. Last year I cooked a dish of shrimp with red and white rice. I tried to hook up two shrimps in the shape of a heart, but it was a bit of a design failure.On the other hand: a fresh bulb of fennel in the crisper drawer! Can't wait.

awww..no oysters ? hehe :) Oh, I once bought fennel seeds instead of cumin seeds, I saw these fennel at the Whole Foods Market, but didn't know what to do with it, now I know, thx for the recipe, Susan, cheers & have a great Valentine's Day !:)

It was food writer Nadine Abensur who made me fall in love with fennel - she is French-Moroccan-Jewish and cooks vegetarian food like no one else. In her latest book she has a recipe for fennel, braised until meltingly tender in pernod and stock, with slices of garlic, slivers of whole orange and garnised with glossy black olives. So good! Fennel for Valentine's Day - I'm with you Susan!

yay, someone else that loves the licorice flavor! no one in my family does...i get the black jellybeans all to myself, 'cause they pick them out! this dish sounds amazing. and thanks for checking out my blog!

can't i have my fennel and chocolate on Valentine's?! :) beautiful photo. Sounds very flavorful. I LOVE FENNEL. Sadly, my boyfriend can't stand it - doesn't sit well in his tummy he proclaims. Too bad for him, I still sneak it into the house rather regularly. Thanks for sharing. hope you had a lovely weekend.

Susan,Love fennel and love the combo with shrimp. Didn't know about it's aphrodesiac properties, but as Lydia said, what WASN'T considered an aphrodesiac back in Roman times? In Chinese medicine it can be used for abdominal pain and indigestion. Maybe that explains why the Romans found it to be an aphrodesiac? ;-)

That looks so good! Your post might get me over my fear of fennel. I HATE black licorice so I always have avoided recipes with fennel. I have yet to cook with it. But 2007 is a year of culinary firsts for me. And something with SHRIMP and PASTA . . . yum!

I have just gotten into using fennel having had a distinct aversion to it for many years - I particularly like it braised. This dish looks like a perfect valentines dish - pasta to share, prawns, the delicate fennel! Delicious!

I am so glad you posted something about fennel. I am beyond curious about this vegetablish herb, but I never cook with it. I just don't know the right recipes. This will be a great starting point - fennel with pasta. Thanks!

That's me too, I never like black licorice--or rather the only true licorice--until I grew into it as an adult. I do love anise as well. I have great recipe for Mediterranean dinner rolls stuffed with feta and mozzarella that have anise in the dough. Drool.

I don't know about replacing chocolate, for the chocoholics among us, but you have an interesting concept here. I had no idea fennel was considered an aphrodisiac. I love eggplant, so I'll have to find a recipe or two that combine eggplant with fennel.

I really didn't discover fennel until I moved to France. That was in 1990, though, so it probably wasn't that available in the USA. It is an absolute favorite of ours in any way, shape or form. Salmon with fennel, fennel gratin, fennel soup...yum.